“Love...?”
Fujiko crossed her arms and looked at the doll with contempt.
“It’s simple. I can tell. There’s something different about you. It’s like there’s a different person mixed in. It smells like a timid girl’s idea of the ideal boy.”
“Tch...” The doll Akuto bit his lip.
“I’m going to guess that the one true part of that little story was the fact that you’re trying to become Emperor, right? And like most other Liradans, you can’t actually hurt anyone. Am I wrong?” Fujiko said confidently. The doll Akuto shook his head in frustration.
“That’s right. So what are you going to do? Turn me over to someone?”
“Hmph. I’m not sure. I did get quite a bit of enjoyment out of this until I realized you were a fake. So maybe I’ll just forgive you.”
“Huh...? Forgive me?”
“That’s right. This idea of yours seems pretty entertaining. You’re going to go around to the other girls and do the same thing you did to me, and that’s how you’re going to seduce Keena, right? Go and give it a try.” She laughed.
The doll seemed confused, so she continued.
“If the other girls can’t tell the difference between you and the real Akuto, it proves that my love for him is the deepest. And if you do succeed in seducing any of them, I’ll have the joy of seeing how awkward they are around him. Give it a try. Go after Junko Hattori and Keena Soga.”
Since he couldn’t use magic, she gave him a simple telepathic phone, as well as Junko and Keena’s contact information.
“You don’t have one of these, do you? Here, this will help. I don’t expect you to actually succeed, but keep at it until you fail.” The doll Akuto frowned as he took the phone, and then waved at her.
“You’re wrong. It’ll work just fine.”
Fujiko, now alone in the room, sighed to herself.
“...Maybe I should’ve just destroyed him here, because I don’t think it’s going to work. It takes a little effort, but there are any number of ways to tell the difference between a doll and a human,” she said. “Maybe there’s a reason he’s so desperate?”
○
Junko was very surprised when she got a call from an unlisted number. There weren’t a lot of unlisted numbers left these days. But she was doubly surprised when she picked it up and it was Akuto.
“...What’s going on? You’ve got your own phone, don’t you?”
“It was stolen.”
“Stolen?”
“That’s right. Can you meet? I want to talk.”
“Sure. Where do you want me to go?”
“Someplace we can be alone. Can we meet at the mountain behind the school?”
“Got it.” When she hung up the phone, though, something felt wrong.
“I should be careful, I think. Something’s not right. Especially if he wants me to go up the mountain. It could be a trap.” Junko grabbed her sword, and took a longer route than usual up the mountain. But despite her caution, she didn’t see anything that looked like a trap.
“Sorry to keep you waiting,” Junko said as she cautiously stood in front of Akuto.
“No, it’s fine. We’ve got a problem to deal with.” Akuto said, suddenly clasping both hands around her left.
“What... Why are you grabbing my hand like that?” Junko looked away and mumbled. But Akuto looked straight at her face.
“I’m sorry. But I’m just worried. There’s a fake version of me walking around.”
“A fake?” Junko turned back to look at him in surprise.
“That’s right. Kita made a doll which can copy humans. And it’s trying to get rid of the real me.” To Junko, Akuto didn’t look like he was lying. But something felt wrong.
“And they stole your student handbook?
“No, but...”
“I understand that you’re having trouble believing it, but it’s hard to prove that I’m real. And Eto already believes the fake, not me.”
“Eto does?”
“That’s right. She says she loves me, but she can’t tell the difference between the real me and a fake. But you can, right?” Akuto lifted her hand up to his face and begged her.
“W-Wait a minute...” Junko took a small step back. She’d been suspicious of this Akuto from the start, but when she heard that Fujiko had been deceived by the fake, the flames of rivalry had risen within her. If she could tell the difference between the real Akuto and the fake one, that would mean that she loved him more than anybody.
“Don’t worry. Just believe in me. All you have to do is wait until you see two of us, and then believe the one that Eto doesn’t,” he continued.
“W-Wait a minute, though...” Junko shook her head and retreated further. But Akuto didn’t let go. He just took a step forward.
“Do you not like me?”
“T-That’s not the problem!”
“You’re scared, aren’t you? Don’t worry. Just leave it to me and everything will be fine.”
“T-That’s not it... Something’s weird with you.”
“Do you mean you don’t believe me? Then I’ll just have to prove I’m the real me.” He let go of her hand, and then grabbed her jaw with his thumb and index finger, and yanked it upwards.
“W-Wait... What do you mean prove it?” Junko was red right up to her ears, and her voice was tremulous.
“Only the real me could give you what you really want.” Akuto brought his face close to hers.
“S-Stop it, you dummy...” Junko knocked his fingers away and looked down.
“Do you not like that?” he whispered to her.
“T-That’s not the issue.”
“Then you’re just scared, aren’t you? Don’t worry. Just leave everything to me.” He put his hand on her head and gently stroked her hair. Then he lightly put his head on top of hers.
“Oh...” Junko shivered and looked up at him.
“Now, it’s time for you to become mine.” He slowly lifted up her head.
“No, um... well...” Junko shook her head softly, before closing her eyes and softly opening her lips.
“That’s right...” He moved towards her lips...
“T-This is wrong!” She pushed him away. He staggered back before falling to the ground.
“You don’t believe me...?” He asked, saddened. She shook her head violently.
“That’s not it...! It’s not... But... something seems wrong with you today. Maybe you are the fake...”
“How can you say that...?”
“N-No. That’s not. Don’t make that face. But the boy I know wouldn’t do something like this just to get somebody to believe him. That’s all.” Her breathing was shallow, as if she was in pain.
Akuto stood up and shook his head as if he was disappointed.
“No, I understand. But it’s hard to prove I am who I say I am. I’ll have to ask another girl.”
Junko sadly crossed her arms across her chest.
“D-Don’t say that... Don’t talk about other girls. It’s like you’re playing with my heart. It um... well... it hurts.”
“I know it’s wrong. But I’m worried that if I don’t prove I am who I say I am, I might disappear.”
“A-Alright... G-Go see Korone then. We’d have to use some kind of tool to see if you’re a doll or not, but Korone would be able to do it on her own,” Junko said.
Akuto’s eyes went wide with surprise.
“Korone can tell? That’s right... I never thought of that.”
“Yeah. Well, now you know. So stop talking about making other girls believe you, and...” Junko looked away from him.
“I’ll always believe in you. So next time we’re alone, I’ll make sure I’m ready for it...” She looked back at Akuto with the eyes of a maiden. “When that happens, you can finish what you tried to do today... Wait, he’s gone!”
Akuto had already left, and all that was left was the quiet mountain air.
“W-What’s wrong with him?! I don’t care if he’s
real or a fake. Next time I see him, he’s going to pay!” Junko threw a tantrum to herself, all alone on the mountain.
○
“I don’t know why, but the Demon King is going around seducing girls.”
“I guess there’s a fake Demon King going around, and he wants them to believe that he’s really who he says he is. He says that whoever the Empress decides is real, is real, so he wants their help.”
“What is he thinking... Are any of the girls actually falling for it?”
“A lot of them. There are a lot of girls who’ve just outright fallen in love.”
“Do girls just want a man who’s strong, and don’t care about anything else? Wait, hasn’t he got enough girls already, like Eto?”
“He goes after them anyway. He’s even seduced girls who already have boyfriends...”
“The boyfriends are probably willing to fight the Demon King then, even if it means risking their lives.”
“Yeah. So he’s just seducing the girls and then punching the boyfriends and running away.”
“That’s awful... What is he trying to accomplish?”
“Who knows? Supposedly he’s heading towards Korone and the Empress...”
The whole school was in an uproar. Everybody knew what Akuto was up to. Some of the students were following him, and some of them were running from him. The real Akuto sighed when he heard this, and looked to Yoshie.
“...What do we do?”
“Well, even if Nozomi’s personality is mixed in with yours, a lot of this is your own fault. If you want to seduce a girl, it’s easy for you.”
“I didn’t ask to be born this way.”
“Don’t get mad, okay? But, where do you think Keena is?” she asked. “We need to find her and protect her.” She crossed her legs as she sat down in a chair. They were in her warehouse lab. The two of them had tried searching for the doll, but after not having any luck, decided to retreat and come up with a plan.
“You can’t just detect his location?” Akuto asked. Every person had a unique mana signature, which could be easily traced.
“No, you need a lot of authority to do that. I could do it via hacking if I wanted to, but I’d rather not take the risk. They’ve been watching me pretty closely since the Empress came,” Yoshie said.
“Could you track Korone then? She should be able to tell if I’m human or not. I’d feel a lot better if I knew she was with Keena.”
“Yeah, she could. I’m sorry, but I never intended to hide the fact that it was a doll.”
“It was just an experiment, after all. But it didn’t really have to copy me, did it?”
“Yeah, about that...” Yoshie spun the chair halfway around and uncrossed her legs, spreading them wide. Then she put both hands between them and leaned forward with a grin.
“Part of the reason I copied your personality was to see how you’d react when we were alone, and I tried to seduce you.”
“Huh...?” Akuto didn’t know what to say.
She rolled the chair across the floor towards him, and then looked up into his eyes.
“It’s not that surprising. Girls can get embarrassed, you know. Sometimes you want to practice before you say something, and sometimes, just practicing is good enough.”
“Does that mean...”
“I wanted to have some fun with somebody who had the same face as you, you know.” She wrapped her arm around his neck.
Akuto was flustered.
“T-There isn’t time for this. We need to find out where Korone is, or Keena will be in danger.”
“That’s the problem... You know how you’re so obsessed with Keena Soga? Sometimes it gives me ideas. It makes me think that it might be fun if I could have you all to myself.” She raised her head up to his until their foreheads were touching.
“I-I never noticed any of this...” Akuto stammered.
“That’s because you’re dense. How could I not fall in love with someone who forgot I was a girl, and treated all my ideas about games, souls, and society seriously?” She looked at him with dewey eyes.
“T-There’s no time for this, though...”
“And that’s why I’m doing it. I actually know where Korone is. She’s not with Keena. So Keena could be in danger.” Her face was smirking in a way he’d rarely seen before.
“...Let me go, then! I have to find her.”
“Nope.”
“If Soga is seduced, I’ll be sad.”
“Come on, it doesn’t have to be for long. Won’t you make me feel wonderful?”
“But that’s...”
“Yes. I know it’s really selfish. But I’m a girl too, you know?” Yoshie pulled him close as she stood up. And then...
○
While all this was going on, Keena was in the special reception room that had been recently constructed for the Empress. Other than the fact that it had a rice container that was constantly kept full, there was nothing special about it at all. Keena was taking a nap there, but opened her eyes when a sudden visitor arrived.
“Oh, Ackie! What’s up? Want to take a nap with me?”
“That sounds lovely, but there’s no time. There’s a fake version of me that’s after you.”
Akuto knelt down in front of Keena, who was lazily lying on the sofa. Her response, however, was less than concerned.
“Mmhm... Sounds bad.”
“...Can you take this a little more seriously? My fake is trying to win you over to his side, and then take power,” Akuto warned, but she didn’t seem to be fully awake.
“Win me over? What does that mean?”
“Well... he’ll get you to think he’s real, and then... Basically, he’ll stay by your side forever and try to use your powers as Empress.”
“Ooh. Always by my side. I like that. Let’s stay together forever, Ackie.” Keena nodded, still spaced out, and then grabbed Akuto and pulled him on to the sofa.
“H-Hey!” Akuto said, giggling a little.
“We’re just gonna take a nap. Napping feels good, right? Especially if there’s somebody in your arms.” Keena rubbed her cheek against his.
“...That’s what the fake is going to do to try and win you over. You need to be more careful. What if I’m the fake?” Akuto said, a little upset.
“Don’t worry. I haven’t looked, but it’s really you. I rubbed my cheek up against you to check. Now goodnight.” She gave Akuto’s cheek a kiss, still spaced out.
“Uwah... Come on, take this seriously. Did you really mean you can tell if it’s me?” Akuto asked.
“Yup. But whether you’re real or fake, you’re still Ackie. And no matter what happens, I’m on your side. No matter who says you’re a fake, I’ll protect you,” she said, still in a sleep-induced daze.
Akuto laughed a little.
“You’re such a silly girl... But it makes me happy that you feel that way.”
○
Yoshie flipped the switch of the fake Akuto, which was concealed by his hair on the back of his neck. The Akuto doll slumped like the strength had left its body. The mana quickly dissipated from its skin, which returned to the featureless black it had been before.
“I’m sorry for being so selfish. But you know, I’d be way too embarrassed to say that to the real person.” Yoshie called Keisu back in from the other room where she’d been waiting, and had her put the doll away.
“And I know you didn’t want to disappear, either. You may be a copy, but you still have a soul. You needed to have some meaning for your life to be worth anything. That’s why you were so desperate. And anyway, even if you did win over the Empress, it wouldn’t be long at all before someone found out who you were... I’m really sorry I made you for such selfish reasons. I shouldn’t have done it,” Yoshie said to the doll.
“Master, why was Akuto here in the warehouse?” Keisu said, looking up at her confused.
“Because this one was the doll.”
“No, I understand that. But I was sure this was the real Akuto...”
/>
“When we were going around looking for the doll, Akuto split off to look for Keena. And then the doll came back to find me. It was probably worried that Korone would be able to tell what it was. I noticed right away, but I was waiting for the right chance to turn it off, so I decided to pretend it had fooled me.”
“I see. But what was all that complicated stuff you were saying?” Keisu asked. Yoshie shook her head.
“It’s not something you need to understand... There was something I needed to apologize to him for. Oh, but there’s something I need to apologize to the real Akuto for, too.” Yoshie scratched her head.
“What’s that?”
“Well, ’cause indirectly I made it so Akuto’s even more hated at school.” Just as she said that, Akuto left the reception room. He’d been told that the doll had shut down, and had left Keena asleep on the sofa. There was a certain tension in the air, he felt. And not the good kind. He walked through a crowd of students, and only then did he noticed how bad the atmosphere really was.
“Um... Is something bad going on?” The horrible things that happened next are too terrible to relate here.
3 - The Trio’s Fun Day Off
As it happens, the Student Council Trio was always busy. Lily Shiraishi always took her job seriously, but she was the type who figured that if she did the bare minimum of what was required, she could ignore the rest. As a result, the smaller jobs were always passed on to the vice-president, the treasurer, and the secretary.
“I need moah tomatoh juice,” Michie Ootake said as she stared at her mana screen with vacant eyes. Her white skin and red eyes had an even more unhealthy pallor than usual. She looked extremely sick.
“...There’s some tomato juice on the desk, gyah,” Kanna Kamiyama said as she pointed at Michie’s desk. Kanna was always a tomboy, with a wild look about her. But now she was exhausted. Her hair was a mess. She looked less wild and more like somebody who’d been stranded at sea. Her mana screen was also displaying a huge amount of data.
“Dah tomatoh juice ya bought doesn’t have salt in it!” Michie slammed a fist down on the desk. The pack of tomato juice, which had a straw already poked into it, bounced a little.
Kanna looked annoyed.
Demon King Daimaou: Volume 10 Page 6
